A statement from a group purporting to be Continuity Sinn Féin (CSF)/Continuity IRA (CIRA) has said it has decided to disband and end its "futile" armed campaign.

The group stated the decision to disband from midnight last night and over a three-month period, was taken, it said, after consulting its membership, at a meeting of the leadership of the CIRA in Northern Ireland.

"The CIRA leadership meeting in the six counties has taken in the last number of weeks the decision to abandon its armed campaign," the statement said.

"After meeting with our membership throughout the 32 counties it was decided that the opportunity now exists for the attainment of our political goals by abandoning the armed struggle."

The statement, sent to the Limerick Leader which includes a recognised code word, thanks republicans and "members of the clergy" for their "great assistance in guiding us in this decision".

The statement includes an apology for the effects of the group's violent actions on communities.

"We know the great hurt and pain we have inflicted on communities both north and south and for that we offer our sincerest apology and hope by this action no more pain or loss will visit them."

"As of 12 midnight on the 7/6/2017 the organisation known as CSF/CIRA will disband and over a 3 month period that has being agreed the small amount of arms & explosive material we posses will be decommissioned under agreed procedures."

"We urge our former activists instead of continuing a futile war to heed the unanimous decision of your leadership along with the vast wishes and the will of the Irish people and put their energy into their families and communities," the statement concludes.

The Continuity IRA has been traditionally linked to Republican Sinn Féin since the late 1980s by republicans opposed to Sinn Fein's political goals.

The Continuity Sinn Féin organisation, formerly known as Republican Sinn Féin Limerick, was formed in recent years.

The first British Open to be shown on Sky after the BBC lost the rights - so no more Peter Alliss

The Course

Troon hosts the Open for the 9th time since the course was founded in 1878. A professional called George Strath redesigned the layout in 1884, much of which remains, although, as with all major championship courses, a lot has changed too. The Open first came visiting in 1923, and Troon effectively pushed Prestwick off the rota as the SW Scotland venue for the Open (Turnberry did not get onto the rota until after WW2).

So, a classic out and back design, which means the wind direction is crucial. The weather is predicted dry, coolish and windy 12-17 mph winds from varying directions. Not enough to ruin it but should make it plenty testing.The course is only 15 yards longer than last time, at 7,190, with a par of 71.

The most famous hole is the 8th, a very short par 3 known as the "Postage Stamp" because the green looks very small and is surrounded by terrors. In the 1973 Open, veteran Gene Sarazen had a hole in one live on the telly. Telly folk love this fact and will mention it every 5 minutes.

Police have launched an investigation into a Chaldean Catholic priest from London, Ont., after church officials reported more than $500,000 slated for refugee sponsorship was lost to gambling.

Father Amer Saka, a priest working at the St. Joseph Chaldean Catholic Church in London, is under investigation after telling his bishop, Emanuel Shaleta, that funds intended to help new Canadians had instead vanished in vice, Shaleta said.

“He called me on the phone and . . . said he lost all the money. I said, ‘How?’ He said, ‘Gambling,’” Shaleta told the Star on Saturday, referring to a conversation he said took place Feb. 23.

“We believe that Father Saka has a serious gambling problem and that these funds may have been used for that purpose,” he said. “Since there is an investigation going on, we cannot confirm what he’s saying.”

Shaleta, who sits at the head of Canada’s first and only Chaldean eparchy, or jurisdiction, said he suspended the priest immediately after learning of the missing money.

The bishop drove to London the next day to take Saka for several days of voluntary treatment at Southdown Institute, a non-profit facility north of Toronto for priests battling problems ranging from addiction to depression to sexually abusive behaviour.

London police confirmed they received a complaint Feb. 24 of alleged financial misappropriation related to the local parish.

“An investigation is underway,” said spokesperson Const. Sandasha Bough on March 15. The financial crimes probe was launched more than a week after the initial report, said police, who needed bank records before going further.

No charges have been laid. The allegations have not been proven in court.

A disgruntled Sinn Fein MLA has branded McDonald's "partitionist" for launching a limited edition "Irish" burger in the Republic that won't be available in Northern Ireland.

The fast food chain is promoting the McMór (which its marketing as Gaelic for Big Mac) as a "tribute to the best produce and the finest flavours from across Ireland".

The beef is 100% Irish, the bun is "potato-flaked", and it comes topped with bacon, shredded cabbage, kale, Ballymaloe Relish and Charleville Cheddar.

But West Tyrone MLA Barry McElduff told the Irish News: "It is not 'mór go leor' (big enough) because it does not incorporate the six counties. If it's available in Letterkenny then it should be available in Omagh," he said.

"There is a popular McDonald's in Omagh and I know the patrons in the county of Tyrone would fully expect to have the choice of a McMór.

"McDonald's is a global firm and some people have concerns about its ethics, but we can now add the sin of partitionism to the list."

The McMór was created by the McDonald’s Ireland Chefs Council, which held its first meeting last year aiming to create a burger with real Irish flavours.

A McDonald's spokesman responded to Mr McElduff's complaint: "The McMór was developed by the McDonald's business in the Republic of Ireland for customers in this market specifically.

On Saturday, it will be ten years to the day since this iconic game of football. In many ways, this is the one that changed everything. It was the game which prompted Pat Spillane to famously refer to Tyrone's style of play as "puke football" in his analysis, but what he probably didn't know at the time was that this game was the symbolic beginning of the modern era of Gaelic football.

Mickey Harte had taken over as Tyrone manager for the start of the 2003 season, and they positively burned their way through to the All-Ireland semi-final stage that season, recording an average winning margin of 13 points through the Ulster championship and on to the Kerry showdown.

Their wins over Derry, Antrim, Down and Fermanagh had been marked by brilliant scoring feats. In the same way Donegal would nine years later, they broke in big numbers at speed with huge collective power, and had a vast array of scorers throughout their team. But the semi-final win over Kerry will forever be remembered for the tackling. Their performance that day laid the template for modern defending. Defenders, midfielders and forwards working in unison, relentlessly, to win turnovers and ground down opponents. The famous clip of a sustained spell of intense Tyrone tackling under the Hogan Stand has become the defining image of this game.

The PGA Championship of 2013 returns to Oak Hill CC in upstate New York, venue of the 2003 championship that saw surprise winner Shaun Micheel, one shot ahead on the 18th fairway, hit one of the great finishing shots in major championship history to defeat the equally unknown Chad Campbell. Last year, Rory McIlroy took charge of a wind-blown tournament at Kiawah Island and went on to win by 8 shots. A tournament that once seemed to be alien territory to Europeans has been transformed, with 3 Englishmen joining Rory in the top 5, and 3 other European-born players in the top 10. Martin Kaymer won in 2010 and Padraig Harrington in 2008, sandwiching thrilling wins for YE Yang, the first and so far only Asian to win a major, in 2009 (from 2:20), and Keegan Bradley's play-off win over Jason Dufner in 2011.

The format is 72 holes, with the top 70 making the 36 hole cut. Three hole play-off in the event of a tie.

The golf course is about 4 miles from downtown Rochester in upstate New York. It is close to Lake Ontario and only a few miles from Canada, and 5 hours drive from New York City. The club was founded in 1901 and moved to its current site in 1926, with space for two courses designed by Donald Ross. The design soon won acclaim, and the East Course hosted the US Amateur in 1949, and then the US Open in 1956, which was won by Cary Middlecoff. In 1968, the US Open came back, and Lee Trevino won his first major, becoming the first man to break 70 in all 4 rounds of a major. Another 12 years later, Jack Nicklaus won the PGA here, and in 1989 the US Open came back with a win for Curtis Strange. The 2003 OGA winning score for Shaun Micheel was -4.

Oak Hill was the venue for the 1995 Ryder Cup. The US team included Phil Mickelson, making his debut, while the European team was Ballesteros, Faldo, Monty, Clark, James, Woosnam, Rocca, Gilford, Torrance, Langer, Walton, Johannson. Friday foursomes were 2-2, the US then sneaked into a 5-3 lead after the 4 balls, with Lefty winning his first match. Saturday morning foursomes went 3-1 to Europe, but the Americans again won the fourballs by the same scoreline, to leave it 9-7 going into the singles. Seve, in terrible form, went off first for Europe and hacked his way around. It was a miracle he was still all square at the turn, but he lost 4&3 to Tom Lehman. Clark and James won their matches, and Woosnam halved, to take the score to 9.5-10.5. Love bt Rocca to get the US to 11.5, but then Gilford, Monty, Faldo and Torrance all won on the 17th or 18th to turn the tide, and Europe led 13.5-11.5. Pavin bt Langer, and in the last match, Mickelson was well up on Johansson, so it came down to Philip Walton. 3 up with 3 to play, he lost 16 and 17, but a bogey on 18 was enough to defeat Jay Haas and Europe won in American for only the second time, having taken the singles 7.5 - 4.5.

The course will play 7,163 yards, par 70. There are only 2 par 5s, and' Nicklaus aside, past winners have not been long hitters. The club website boasts how few sub-par rounds have been recorded when big tournaments have come to town. Quite a few holes will not need the driver, but the finish is brutal with two 500 yard par 4s. /quote]